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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29974497">cause ya make me feel gorgeous</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/callmesera/pseuds/callmesera'>callmesera</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Destiny (Video Games)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>(chapter 1 is all plot), (go elsewhere and come back when I update), (so if you're here looking for boning rn), (speaking of banging; that part isn't finished yet), (they just haven't banged yet), (tldr they're in love and know they love each other), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dubious Circumstances; Extremely Enthusiastic Consent, Established Relationship, F/M, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings, Sex Pollen, The One Where Cayde Died Real Good But Came Back, post Forsaken</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 16:34:13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,905</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29974497</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/callmesera/pseuds/callmesera</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>ev'ry man you put your hands on; ya make him feel so goddamn handsome!<br/>I feel oooh, so pretty --- feel ten feet off the ground.<br/>beat the drum, sing off key --- you set me free. </p><p> •♤•</p><p>{ "Acting Captain! Please be careful of that flower, and whatever you do, do not ----” } </p><p>Whatever Failsafe had been about to warn against is lost in the jarring, violent sounds of a sudden sneezing fit. Cayde doesn't have to look too far up to see his Hunter on one of the lower, wider tree branches, covering the mouth of her helmet as if it would help her. </p><p>{ “Oh good. She touched it, didn’t she?” }</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Cayde-6/Female Guardian (Destiny)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>cause ya make me feel gorgeous</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>fic title/description including lyrics from "Gorgeous" by X Ambassadors. </p><p>right, I mentioned it in the tags but here we go again: if ya naughty, you're looking for chapter 2. (which, as of the time of posting, is not complete yet, rip. ) Chapter 1 is entirely setup, because I'm a fool who decided to include a healthy amount of plot with her porn.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>In fairness to Skadi, it hadn't been her idea to spend their first mission together -- really, properly together -- out on a planetoid that was, at present, going through the process of being slowly but surely disintegrated and distilled into wine via a massive Cabal flagship. It really hadn't. </p><p>But Cayde had felt the need to repay Failsafe for, at least in part, helping to free him from the Vex prison of his own making. ( <em> { “You need not repay me! I was merely a witness to the Cayde-unit's lack of self-preservation instincts.” } </em> the AI had chirped. ) And now that he was free from the confines of the Tower and the rules and regulations thereof, he was finally able to take a crack at an idea he and Banshee and Pandemonium had been cooking up for years now. </p><p>( naturally, he had to bring his second-in-command with him. for science, you see. ) </p><p>It was a simple enough idea. Could they manage to free Failsafe from being... well, Failsafe? Could they manage to transplant her consciousness into another receptacle? After all, if the scientists of the Golden Age had managed to transfer human brains into a waiting body, why couldn't they replicate it from one computer to another? </p><p>In practice.... well, that was what he had Skadi around for. Not really one for fine mechanical work, his Hunter, but her quick thinking and perceptive nature meant that any situation gone south was immediately improved for having her be a part of it.</p><p>( there's also the part where he is absolutely, hilariously, entirely and wholeheartedly smitten with her. )</p><p>( not that that's news --- hasn't been for at least a couple decades, really. the new part is that she is just as smitten with him, and that's the part that almost short-circuits him every time he stops to try to process it. )</p><p><em> Think she's disappointed? </em> He asks Sundance through their link as he regards Skadi from his peripheral vision. <em> She doesn't seem too keen on dropping onto Nessus again so soon. </em></p><p>
  <em>  &lt; Nah, are you kidding? Look at her --- like, really look at her. &gt;  </em>
</p><p>Oh, but he is. Cayde never has to be instructed to turn his focus to the single most radiant creature in the solar system. She draws his attention perfectly well by simple nature of her existence.</p><p><em> &lt; Yeah, yeah, she's gorgeous, we know, we get it, &gt; </em>   interrupts his Ghost. <em>  &lt; But look.  There. &gt;  </em></p><p> </p><p><em> Wh... </em> </p><p> </p><p>It's such a ridiculously subtle movement that it takes him a minute to spot it --- if he hadn't been clued in, he might never have thought thought to look close enough to see it -- but once he catches it, he's at once both blown away that he ever managed to miss it and, somehow, is managing to slide even further ass-over-teakettle in love with her. </p><p>Though her form tends toward stillness during moments of inaction -- ( as a byproduct of a century and a half spent in the wild, no doubt ) --  there's still the slight, tangible movement of her toying with one of the many starlight colored braids that make up the intricate mass of her hair.</p><p>
  <em> &lt; See? She's totally comfortable. Also, you know, I CAN just ask her companion who shares a telepathic connection with her --- and YOU can just ask. Like, with your voice and everything.  &gt; </em>
</p><p>He playfully swats at Sundance. She bumps into the side of his head in turn.</p><p>
  <em> &lt; Dum-dum. &gt; </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Pest. ♡ </em>
</p><p>&lt;"Alright, we're coming in on the descent,"&gt; interrupts Ullr. The Ghost compiles into his Guardian's outstretched hand, blinking his optic at the two Hunters. &lt;"Where would you like to be dropped?"&gt;</p><p>"I'm thinking right outside the Exodus Black; make luggin' all this technology around a little easier. What'cha think, darlin'?"</p><p>"Less chance of the component getting stolen or damaged during travel," says Skadi with quiet consideration. "Equal chance of getting shot at. Higher chance of attracting attention to ourselves… then getting shot at."</p><p> </p><p>He loves when she talks all technical and strategic like. </p><p> </p><p>"Sooooooo?"</p><p>"Risk versus reward ratio stays about the same no matter where we drop. But if one of us goes down first and clears the area around the Exodus Black, it'll look like just another Guardian patrol to the Eliksni. They may even leave us alone for a while if we're lucky."</p><p>"Sounds like a plan. You wearin' my Lucky Pants, babe?"</p><p>She smiles, the faintest upturn at the corner of her lips. "No. I'm wearing mine."</p><p>Cayde's responding laughter echoes with fervor in the confines of her ship.</p><p>"Good enough for me then. Coin flip for who goes down, and then we'll---"</p><p>The smirk she passes him right before she transmats to the surface is downright devastating. Despite damn well knowing it's impossible, he swears he can pick up the distinct sounds of a rocket launcher being fired with great relish somewhere far below him.</p><p>"Light, that woman should be illegal."</p><p>
  <em> &lt; Would that stop you? &gt; </em>
</p><p>Cayde scoffs. "You kiddin'? It'd only make me adore her more."</p><p> </p>
<ul>
<li>♤ ●</li>
</ul><p> </p><p>From there the Hunter's transmat down to the planetoid's surface goes smoothly, as does the set-up work interfacing with Failsafe's more delicate machinery. Step one: data gathering from her core and determining the intricacies of Failsafe's programming for the egg-heads who can actually make sense of all these 0's and 1's and all the other nonsense that makes Cayde's head spin.</p><p>Step one-and-a-half: offer some fresh baked cookies to the Golden Age AI whose consciousness is currently trapped in the debris of a massive ship.</p><p> </p><p>No, really. </p><p> </p><p>"Pandemonium baked these for you!" boasts Cayde with a wide grin. "Seemed real proud of them --- and he should, they're delicious. Not. Not that I would know or anythin'. Definitely didn't taste any on the way here, not me."</p><p><em> { “Crewmate Pandemonium is very kind!” } </em> chirps Failsafe. <em> { “I will make sure to inform him that his efforts are appreciated!” } </em></p><p>
  <b><em>{ “But uhhh.... how am I supposed to eat them?”  }</em> </b>
</p><p>"No clue! Enjoy!"</p><p>And for a blessed hour or so, everything seemed to be going as it should. Cayde had even gotten permission from Failsafe to finish those cookies once the job was done --- oh, they'd been <em> so </em> naughty, sitting there all delicious and tantalizing and <em> uneaten </em>. He'd been daydreaming about what exactly he was planning on doing to those little sumbitches, until...</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> { “Intruder alert!” } </em>
</p><p> </p><p>A frustrated sigh tears from the Exo's vocal synthesizers as his focus snaps back to reality. "Failsafe, it's us. Skadi and Ullr just went outside to go set up a post; ya don't gotta sound the alarm every time we ---"</p><p>
  <b> <em>{ “Please shut up. She's about to start getting shot at.” }</em> </b>
</p><p>"Wh--"</p><p>&lt;"Failsafe's right,"&gt; chimes in Ullr over the comms. &lt;"A ketch just dropped out of orbit."&gt;</p><p>"All the baddies you've put down and you're telling me ya can't handle some Fallen there, Ghosty?"</p><p>&lt;"We would deeply prefer not to get caught in crossfire between them and the ones who are pushing to flank us, if you must know."&gt;</p><p> </p><p>Oh. </p><p> </p><p>Oh that's bad.</p><p> </p><p>The Guardian's voice crackles through their communicators, terse and clipped. "Stop bitching. Start backing us up."</p><p>Cayde is hauling his happy metal ass outside before she can even finish her sentence.</p><p> </p>
<ul>
<li>♤ ●</li>
</ul><p> </p><p>For what it was worth, they put up a damn good show. This is the reassurance he comforts himself with as he watches two Dregs run out from inside Failsafe's AI Core, carrying the tech with the copied data between them and hooting and hollering the entire way into the forest. </p><p>Skadi is practically a statue where he holds her against his frame in their hidey-hole. He can't see her expression under her helm, but if he knows her -- and he does, thank you very much -- she's probably none too pleased with how the situation had shaken down. </p><p>He'd found her holding off Fallen like some kind of vengeful angel, all flashing knives and echoing shots from her Hawkmoon as the bodies piled around her. A platoon of Eliksni headed by one particularly tenacious Captain had pushed through the Vex to make it up the hill that led to the Exodus Black, forcing Skadi to keep her sights on their right rather than on the approaching ketch. And master on the field though she was --- the fluid elegance with which she moved was unparalleled, sinking her blade into a Vandal's throat, throwing another knife into a Dreg's chest, then shooting down a Shank all in one smooth motion -- even Skadi wasn't immune to being overrun and outnumbered. Once the ketch had started spewing more Shanks and Servitors…</p><p>They'd nearly been surrounded; roaring fire coalesced into a solid weight in Cayde's palm the second his boots hit the dirt, reducing the Fallen that had been swiping at his Hunter to ash with each shot. More only took their place. </p><p>But she wasn't out of tricks. As if it were an answering echo, Skadi's Light swelled into overflow a mere heartbeat after Cayde's faded, gathering around her in scorching Solar force as she gracefully flourished her cloak and summoned a barrage of flaming knives from within the folds of fabric. The bodies of the Fallen were already disintegrated before her cloak had even swished back into place. </p><p>
  <em> A goddamn angel.  </em>
</p><p>And maybe if he'd managed to pick his metal jaw up from the ground where he'd dropped it, he may have been able to <em> shoot </em> the two bastards what ran into the AI core. But he'd only just caught the flash of movement out of the corner of his vision before another round of Shanks dropped; his snarl of vexation had mixed well with her hissed curse as she'd thrown a smoke decoy, disappearing them both before pulling him into hiding. </p><p>Cayde, for his part, <em> seethes. </em>  ( ohhhhh is he going to make them <em> regret </em> taking the ---- the….. the THING! yeah, <em> that </em> thing, the one they need! how dare they have the bravery to cross him, the <em> gall </em> --- )</p><p>Skadi stirs against him, drawing his attention away from his ire and onto… well, more <em> important </em>things. </p><p>"You okay?" she murmurs. Her hand raises to brush against his jawline and he could just about die right there. </p><p>"Yeah. Yeah, I'm good. How 'bout you?"</p><p>She nods. "Nothing my Ghost couldn't patch up."</p><p>( oh, AND they hurt her??? illegal. absolutely sassafrasin' unacceptable. )</p><p>"I take it back --- think I caught a case of the ol' itchy trigger finger. Only one cure."</p><p>"... Great big rocket launcher?" She asks with an airy laugh.</p><p>His mouthplates twitch in an Exo's facsimile of a big ol' honking grin. "Ever told you that you're my favorite?"</p><p>"Once or twice. You could do to say so more often."</p><p> </p>
<ul>
<li>♤ ●</li>
</ul><p> </p><p>And that was how the Hunters found themselves stalking through the underbrush of Nessus' forests, tracking their prey as much by their excited chattering as by their footprints.</p><p>It occurs to Cayde that, aside from their ill-fated sojourn into the Prison and her earlier rescue mission a few years prior, this is the first chance he's really had to witness Skadi operate in the field. For someone as adorned in silvers and whites and golds as she is, she does exceedingly well blending in to the scenery; she's adept at making sure the white of her vest and gauntlets are either covered by the dark folds of her cloak, or used to break up the silhouette of her form as she flits like a sparrow from branch to branch. </p><p>( no, not a sparrow. she is a huntress in every possible meaning of the word --- if she is to be likened to any bird, she is a <em> hawk. </em>)</p><p>He holds up his fist, making sure she knows to hold her position. They've made it pretty far out, now --- they're reaching the edges of what the Vanguard have mapped, where the trees have become moreso goliaths with leaves and it's all too easy to lose sight of one another. </p><p>The Dregs, too, seem to note their predicament. Now, Cayde would be the last person to say that he was necessarily <em> fluent </em> , but from what he can decipher of the Eliksni's chattering, the pair managed to mismark their nav-points with the wrong coordinates and are <em> deeply </em>confused as to why there's no backup waiting for them. </p><p>Well. It's a problem for <em> them. </em>Much less so is it a problem for the predators who have hit a lucky break in their hunt. </p><p>Cayde tilts his head upwards to where he knows Skadi lurks among the branches. In turn, she allows the light filtering in through the leaves to catch on her gauntlets, granting him knowledge of her exact position in a brief flash of white.</p><p>"I'll distract them," her voice floats in over their comm-link. "You come in behind them, and we should have them taken out before they can alert their ketch."</p><p>The fist he hold transitions to a thumbs-up. He holds it for just long enough to be certain she saw it… and then he reaches for the Ace of Spades. </p><p>It doesn't take Skadi long to act. A gleaming spot of light appears almost directly in front of the Dregs -- reflected sunlight off the metal plating of her knee-pad, if he had to assume -- and steals their attention, quieting their chatter as they approach out of curiosity.</p><p>One shot rings out from the Ace of Spades in a clean headshot. The other Dreg has a knife buried in its back before its companion even hits the ground, and a final shot from Skadi's Hawkmoon seals their doom. </p><p>Cayde whoops with pleased pride, launching himself over the tree root he's been hiding behind. "Alright! Well, what an excellent job completed; now we go take THIS -- " he emphasizes as he yanks the part away from the now <em> very dead </em> Fallen --- "and we get back to Failsafe, finish the OTHER job, and then I get to----"</p><p> </p><p>No. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> NO!!!!  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>Teal-blue optics land on an upturned container that had dropped to the ground when the Dregs did. A <em> familiar </em>container, in fact, that was full of nothing but scattered crumbs -- the same type of crumbs that were dusted on the Fallen's clothes just around their mouths. </p><p>The Exo falls to his knees. Somewhere above him, he hears the sound of rustling as his companion adjusts her position. </p><p>"Skadi… my most trusted teammate. Mission failed; I repeat, mission failed…"</p><p>"Oh?" </p><p>He can hear the lilt in her voice that indicates she's humoring him. Alas, if only there were any humor to be had on this most wretched day…</p><p>"They got the <em> cookies, </em>Skadi."</p><p>The sacastic bite of her hum comes in clear over his comms. "A tragedy. Did you recover the data?"</p><p>"What good is the data if there's nothing to enjoy afterward?" He laments, faking a sob or two for good measure.</p><p>&lt; "I'm sure we can work something out," &gt; responds Ullr dryly. &lt; "In the meanwhile… Failsafe?" &gt;</p><p>
  <em> { How can I help you, Ullr? } </em>
</p><p>&lt; "Do you know where we are?" &gt;</p><p>
  <em> { In relation to the Exodus Black? Yes! } </em>
</p><p>
  <b> <em>{ Do I know what's going on with your surroundings? Not really. }</em> </b>
</p><p>&lt; "Could you tell us if we got you some scans?" &gt;</p><p>
  <em> { Most certainly! I do enjoy learning about the anomaly which I call home! } </em>
</p><p>With that, Skadi and Ullr take to scanning what they can from their vantage point. Sundance, little angel she is, begins to flit around the area and nab some scans of her own. </p><p>
  <em> { Fascinating! If my understanding is correct, this is an area of manufactured garden created by the Vex. They seem to have been studying the effects of flora brought to Nessus by the Cabal and the Fallen. } </em>
</p><p>&lt;"Huh. That is really interesting, actually,"&gt; muses Sundance. &lt;"Also, terrifying. Why do they care about what plants come onto the rock they're trying to terraform?" &gt;</p><p>
  <em>  { "Answer unclear! I could tell you more if you were to access a Vex conflux and locate their notes on the matter, though I do have a basic understanding of the area. In fact ----- Acting Captain! Please be careful of that flower, and whatever you do, do not ----” }  </em>
</p><p>Whatever Failsafe had been about to warn against is lost in the jarring, violent sounds of a sudden sneezing fit. Cayde doesn't have to look too far up to see his Hunter on one of the lower, wider tree branches, covering the mouth of her helmet as if it were to help her. </p><p> </p><p>
  <b> <em>{ “Oh good. She touched it, didn’t she?” }</em> </b>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
The bout of sneezing has since devolved into a few weak coughs; Skadi removes her helm to swipe desperately at her eyes as tears form a running river down her face. She looks like the poster girl for anti-allergen meds, and any other time Cayde would be rather inclined to be rolling around on the forest floor laughing his ass off. Except…</p><p><br/>
“Hey, uh… Failsafe? Was there a <em> reason </em>why she shouldn’t have touched the flower?”</p><p><br/>
The lack of immediate response from the AI only lends itself to the alarm bells going off in his head --- the pregnant pause stretches out longer, and longer, spanning across several seconds before:<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <b> <em>{ “Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!” } </em> </b>
</p><p> </p><p>Ullr, bless him, once again compiles into view before Cayde can open his mouth. &lt; “Was that… are you laughing, Failsafe?” &gt;</p><p>
  <em> { “I am approximating the closest thing I can to laughter! My apologies; it is uncouth to be doing so when I could be providing assistance at this time. Cayde-unit, you may wish to remove the Acting Captain from enemy territory while you have the chance.” }  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b> <em>{ “Or run far, faaaar away from her.” }</em> </b>
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